Second perhaps only to my all-time favorite style tip - to always create a waist, whether or not you are fortunate enough to have one, to paraphrase Tim Gunn - is a piece of fashion advice that I live by year-round: Embrace technology.

Those who do can count themselves part of a trend sure to last longer than anything in your closet - and never more relevant than during the holiday mayhem.

"There's been a huge shift to mobile shopping, and I think in 2013, more than any other year, we've seen that shift," says Charlie Graham, founder and CEO of San Francisco's Shop It to Me app. "People now are using mobile as their primary way of shopping."

The new mobile app lets its 4 million members input brands and sizes they're looking for and get information on sales and deals that match.

It's a shift that makes sense - and cents. Not only do shoppers embracing tech have better access to discounts and deals, but they also get to items more efficiently and tend to have more information about what they're buying, whether that means how a dress was manufactured or how it fits.

With these advantages, it's little wonder that revenues from U.S. e-commerce sales and e-commerce order volumes are expected to be up 19 percent this holiday shopping season over last year, according to data collected from 100 retailers by predictive analytics provider Custora.

Sold on tech's benefits? Let these tools, apps and features enhance your next retail mission.

Shop It to Me: Find today's sales on your personal list of designated brands and sizes either online or via the recently launched iPhone app. It conveniently removes the need to hunt multiple sites manually and cuts down on time wasted visiting sales that are already sold out of your size. "If you know what brands you like, this is the easiest way to check all the sites to find out what is on sale in your size from those designers," Graham says.

Hukkster: This Web tool and companion iPhone app, released last month, notifies you when discounts or sale prices become available for items you "hukk," or save. Using either a button you install on your Web browser or a code from a price tag, it works on products clipped from 500-plus online stores, as well as in-store items from a small group of retailers that includes Banana Republic, Ann Taylor and J. Crew. The best part, other than the lower price, of course? When you do decide to buy an item, "you've considered it, you've picked it out, it's the color you want," says co-founder Erica Bell.

Nifti: Discounts and deals abound these days, especially online. But is that 15 percent off in this week's e-newsletter the best deal you're likely to get or will it be possible to get an even better deal if you hold off? Those are questions Nifti aims to help answer with price graphs that show fluctuations over time and custom alerts that let you know when a particular item has become available for the target price you designate. Available online and as an iPhone/iPad app, the tool works with more than 700 stores.

Same-day delivery apps: You'll find mobile apps for day-of delivery available this holiday season from a variety of sources, including Google Shopping Express and Postmates. Meanwhile, special perks are in store this month: eBay Now offers users of its app free delivery in about an hour on all orders through 6 p.m. Christmas Eve and the option to order gift baskets from select Ferry Building shops through New Year's Eve, and SixDoors, an iPhone app, specializes in same-day deliveries of gift-worthy items from the city's small, independent and emerging boutiques.

More ways to scout deals: Newly launched Savor ushers shoppers to current discounts and promotions for major retailers across product categories from apparel to electronics and allows you to save them for later use. Earlier this year, Pinterest began offering a price alert feature that e-mails users when items pinned from select retailers drop in price. A good bet for last-minute savings, the no-frills Coupons at Checkout browser extension goes to work to reveal available discount and promo codes when you're on a retailer's checkout page and works with all major browsers.

More ways to find great style: There are numerous sites and apps meant to help shoppers find new products they'll enjoy, and they each work a little differently. Some, like Luvocracy, Lyst and Wanelo, allow you to follow influencers and buy products they like and recommend, while Ador aims for a shopable magazine format that directs you to items worn by fashion tastemakers.